SOUTH AFRICA-MENSWEAR FASHION WEEK South African Menswear Week spotlights the best in menswear by established and upcoming local designers

Record ID: 148442

  • Title: SOUTH AFRICA-MENSWEAR FASHION WEEK South African Menswear Week spotlights the best in menswear by established and upcoming local designers
  • Date: 6th July 2015
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF MODELS ON CATWALK DRESSED IN JULIA M-POKO'S DESIGNS
  • Embargoed: 21st July 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: South Africa
  • Country: South Africa
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVAC7DEH6WBB5REH66E0EO6UI4QV
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Julia M-Poko is hard at work in her studio in Cape Town. She was born in Belgium and has Congolese roots but she now calls Cape Town home.
    Julia will be presenting her designs at South African Menswear Fashion Week in a few days. Some last minute stitching is all her latest collection needs.
    She is a young, upcoming designer keen to make her mark on South Africa's fashion industry.
    "There's such a great variety of African men and it all depends on their style so think when I design I have style in mind as opposed to ethnicity background so regardless of whether you European or African there are certain styles that you like so if an African man enjoys wearing simple well tailored pants then I guess yes my clothes would suit the African man yes," said Julia.
    When the big day finally arrives, Julia is on hand backstage as the models are getting ready, making sure everything goes according to plan.
    One by one, the models stroll onto the catwalk. Julia's designs are made of simple, monochromatic colours; something many in the audience seemed to appreciate.
    "Yes I liked the textures and the colours and I liked the jackets. I thought it was very nicely put together and the textures and the subtle colours that are so bold," said Phumi Zaya, a guest at South Africa Menswear Fashion Week.
    Menswear often plays a poor relation to women's styles at local Fashion Weeks, but it is enjoying faster-growing sales and consumer tastes that are becoming more daring.
    "There's always women's shows and then you got some men designers in between the women's shows and you are not promoting the men's clothes because everyone there is for the women's clothes and you can't have a marketing platform that is focused on women and try and sell your men's goods. It just does not work, so we are providing a platform for men's designers to provide their clothing so the market can see what's out there," said Ryan Beswick, Director of South Africa Menswear Fashion Week.
    Also showcasing his Summer/Spring 2015/2016 collection was designer, Mzukisi Mbane. Mbane says he was inspired by African cultural heritage and the South Menswear Fashion Week theme: 'Our Roots.'
    "My work generally is inspired by the prints. It focuses a lot on African print; that's the identity of the brand itself but for this collection which is called 'Our Roots,' I decided to take the common root which is a woman. We are all born by a woman," explained Mbane.
    It's often proven difficult for Africa's home grown designers to break into the mainstream fashion market. But recent fashion trends have seen global fashion designers brands like Burberry, Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior embrace the continent's style, broadening its appeal.
    An expanding middle-class across the continent is also fuelling demand for products made by Africans; good news for young designers like Julia M-Poko.
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